A famous school has many goals

Grade 11 student and first year Hound Shiayli has a passion for hockey at Notre Dame College in Wilcox, SK. Bridges photo by Michelle Berg

Photograph by: Michelle Berg
, The StarPhoenix

With a population of just over 300, it’s hard to believe the Village of Wilcox could be home to anything extraordinary. But the tiny town 41 kilometres south of Regina is known internationally for its hockey program at the Athol Murray College of Notre Dame. The private high school has had more than 130 former students drafted to or sign with teams in the NHL. Twenty alumni are playing or coaching in the league.

But it is “not a hockey factory,” Notre Dame president Rob Palmarin insists.

They want to be known as a “quality academic school and a quality character and spiritual development school,” he said.

“We have a very good school, and that’s the thing that falls under the radar.”

STUDENT LIFE

Most students live at Notre Dame, a high school experience much different from most high school students in Saskatchewan.

There’s a deeper connection among classmates, says Shiayli Toni.

“You know them on a much more personal level. You’re around them all the time.”

This is Toni’s first year at Notre Dame. The Grade 11 student was home schooled in Saskatoon.

“They’re not really your classmates,” says Grade 12 student Ty Sullivan. “They’re more of your brothers in a sense, or sisters if you’re a girl. Everybody looks out for one another.”

Sullivan, who is from Regina, has attended Notre Dame since Grade 9.

While he has been involved with sports since the beginning — having played hockey, football, lacrosse and ultimate Frisbee — he has especially appreciated the academic help.

Sullivan came to Notre Dame with marks in the “low 60s, or high 50s,” but he hopes to leave on the honour roll. He’s looking at taking a degree in mechanical engineering, something he wouldn’t have thought possible a few years ago.

“No matter what teacher I’ve had over my four-year span, they’ve sat with me through extra time, they’ve stayed after school, they’ve done everything in their power to help me,” he said.

Offering an excellent academic program is important to the school, which is why they recently made the decision to supply every student with a Fujitsu LifeBook tablet starting next year.

Palmarin estimates the cost of the tablet, including professional development and new infrastructure to support them, to be about $1,500 per student. Parents of students will be paying for two-thirds of that cost through a $1,000 increase in tuition next year.

Père’s legacy

Father Athol Murray is a legend here. He came to Wilcox in 1927 as the new parish priest and spent the rest of his life turning the college into the place it is today. He died in 1975, but his presence is palpable, with students and teachers often speaking affectionately of “Père.”

Murray was especially known for accepting students even if they couldn’t afford to pay, as long as they were willing to learn. His benevolence continues to be felt.

Sullivan and his Grade Nine brother are attending the school because of Murray’s kindness.

“My dad was [a student] way back in the day,” said Sullivan. “He came here, he was 18, he was a complete wreck. Parents tossed him out of his house, living on his own for two years. He went here, had only his Grade Six education. They worked with him for hours upon end just so he could have an understanding of what was going on in the classroom. They turned his life around.”

The experience was so important to their father that he was happy to pay the tuition for Sullivan and his younger brother.

While the school can no longer accept payment in a bucket of coal or produce as Murray sometimes did in the past, it does offer scholarships and financial aid to those who need help.

Murray’s work was recognized in 1968 when he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. He was also recognized twice as a “hockey builder.” In 1972, he was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. In 1998, he was posthumously inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Murray believed in developing the mind, body and spirit, and therefore put equal emphasis on academics, athletics and faith.

“Père challenged the kids,” said Palmarin. “If you believe that God exists, then what are you doing about it? Are you working on a relationship with God and God’s people? So he challenged them. He wasn’t proselytizing, he wasn’t trying to convert them to anything, but he wanted them to have a belief in God and a relationship with God.”

Although Notre Dame is a Catholic school, it is open to people of all faiths. Spiritual development is an important aspect. Every Sunday, everyone must go to mass, regardless of religious affiliation, says Palmarin.

“We study together, we eat together, we play our sports together, and on Sunday we worship together,” he said.

Toni came to the school to play hockey — she was scouted at the Sask First Program — but then discovered the faith element.

“I didn’t know I would enjoy it, but I actually really do; I really appreciate that side of the school.”

She says she became Christian a month ago, thanks to her experiences at the school.

FACING OFF

Notre Dame College has 12 hockey teams: two junior, eight midget and two bantam. Three are women’s teams. Notre Dame is the only organization in Saskatchewan that has a team in the Junior Women’s Hockey League.

The school also offers hockey as an alternative physical education class, which means teams can practice every day during school hours, freeing up time after school to focus on homework.

The school’s hockey success has several roots, says Palmarin.

“It’s a combination of good coaching, attracting not only good players, but also players who, when we get them here, we do see improvement,” he said. “And we emphasize the skill development, and development of the team play, and also emphasize the character development. It’s a combination of all that: The players, the coaches, the program, the skills, the practising.”

Toni, who plays for the JWHL Hounds, attributes the teams’ success to the sense of community the school creates.

“Our teams are more successful just because we do know each other on a personal basis, because we’re able to communicate better and interact better,” she said. “And definitely the coaches being around school all the time; if you have any questions, they’re always there for us.”

The academic and spiritual development of Notre Dame may be top-notch, but the school is still known as a hockey school both at home in Saskatchewan and abroad.

Two-thirds of their students are not from Saskatchewan and Palmarin says hockey is the number one hook that draws people to the school.

The diversity of the students has been both a boon and a bane for Sullivan. On the one hand, he has met kids from all over the world, with roommates from Australia, France, Russia, and the States.

On the other hand, it means competition for his favourite position of goaltender was high; he played with the Hounds in Grade Nine, but didn’t make the team the following year.

Sullivan thinks people pay too much attention to the hockey side of the school, pointing out that the men’s rugby team has been undefeated for the past four years. The only time they’ve lost is when they had to play themselves because they have A and B teams.

Palmarin is proud of the successes of the hockey program, but he believes personal development is more important.

Developing leaders with character is what really matters, he says.

“Not every kid can make it to the NHL, but every kid can end up a leader with character.”